Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Intel Made A VR Headset And It's Totally Cord-Free

Intel just announced its own virtual reality headset called Project Alloy, a VR competitor to theÂ Oculus Rift,HTC ViveÂ and the forthcomingÂ PlayStation VRÂ headsets. But what separates the Alloy from the pack is that itâs completely wireless (the wire above is for capturing video for the demo) and it should give you complete spatial awareness without all the dongles the Rift and Vive currently require.

It does this using two of Intelâs RealSense cameras to continuously map your environment. It can even map your hands.

Intel calls the idea âMerged Realityâ, essentially combining inputs from cameras around your environment into a virtual world. And Intel was able to pack everything â" the processor, sensors and controllers â" into one cord-free headset.

During Intelâs demo, however, the RealSense camera didnât seemÂ quiteÂ as fluid as youâd hope, especially if itâs your primary means of reacting to the digital world around you. Intel says that its hardware will be open source in the second half of 2017 (ugh), so the headset wonât be available anytime soon. Intel is also working with Microsoft so Alloy can run Windows Holographic, the softwareÂ which powers Hololens, according to Microsoftâs Terry Myerson. Microsoft says that Windows Holographic will also be released in an update for all Windows 10 PCs next year.